Chris Miller, a junior at Colorado State University, cuts it up as he shows off his technique at rock, paper, scissors. Miller, who was playing the game at CB & Potts restaurant and brewery in Fort Collins on Tuesday, will be competing next week in Mexico in the U.S. college championships.

Some people are born to greatness; others have it thrust upon them. Still others find it when a buddy announces, Dude, you should come by and compete in this rock, paper, scissors contest.

Which is precisely how Chris Miller of Fort Collins earned a free trip to Acapulco, Mexico, a chance to win $25,000 and a certain degree of YouTube immortality. All by playing a game millions have used to settle everything from which team bats first to who eats the last Ding Dong.

Yes, Miller is as stunned by this as you are.

“I entered a contest at a bar on a lark,” Miller said on a recent afternoon. “I didn’t prepare and had no expectations. Frankly, I don’t know how you’d prepare for this game.”

But Miller, a junior at Colorado State University, won his qualifying contest and $1,000 in February. The event, held at a bar in Old Town, was sponsored by Amp Energy, a drink manufacturer.

Miller will spend March 14-17 on an all-expenses-paid trip to Mexico. There he will compete against 15 other contestants at the USA Rock Paper Scissors League College Championships, a single-elimination tournament held during MTV’s spring-break bash.

The game, dubbed RPS by fans, boasts an assortment of virtues. It requires no equipment. Only two contestants are needed, although more can play. The rules are simple. And the outcome isn’t decided by judges or replay cameras.

Best of all, the imbibing of beer does not impair game-day performance.

Murky origins, codified rules

While RPS’s origins are murky, a similar game known as jan-ken-pon became popular in Japan in the late 19th century, perhaps qualifying it as one of that nation’s first global exports. The World Rock Paper Scissors Society codified international rules in 2002.

Doug Walker, the 2,500-member society’s managing director, said the game’s egalitarianism is part of its resurging appeal.

“You don’t get a chance to go down the bobsled run just by showing up at the Olympics, but in RPS you get a chance to compete at a world-class level just by walking through the door,” Walker said.

RPS has been used at international auction houses. In 2006, it was employed in a federal courtroom in Florida to settle a dispute between attorneys on a legal fine point.

Lately it has experienced a groundswell of popularity as an organized bar game. The vibe is akin to trivia nights at popular watering holes: Twentysomethings show up to socialize and vie for prizes, the venue gets publicity and sales, and the event’s corporate sponsor touts its product, typically something youth-oriented.

Occasionally even altruism gets tossed in. Three Kings Tavern at 60 S. Broadway is throwing an RPS tourney March 16 to benefit Bands for Lands, a conservation group.

The game seems an exercise in randomness, but veteran players swear they can decipher opponents’ tendencies over the course of a long game.

“The best spring break ever”

Miller, a lanky guy from Highlands Ranch majoring in health and exercise science at CSU, is excited about Acapulco.

“It’s starting to set in right now,” Miller said. “I have all my exams and school projects taken care of, and right after Mexico, I’m going to Las Vegas with friends. It’s going to be the best spring break ever.”

Not that he’s taking anything for granted. A big sports fan, Miller knows how cockiness can monkey-wrench goals — witness Olympic snowboarders who wipe out yards from the finish line while prematurely celebrating victories.

With the hope of paying off college debts with the $25,000 grand prize, Miller is keeping his game face on. Asked about strategy, he shook his head like a true natural.

“You know, it was weird,” Miller said. “I went into the qualifying competition and sort of approached my ‘throws’ randomly. After I won, I went online and studied the game a bit. There was a psychologist talking about looking an opponent in the eyes and reading their aggressiveness.”

Miller paused. “I don’t know,” he said with a shrug. “It’s kind of like being good at a coin toss.”

Given Miller’s status as a champion athlete — or at least a pretty good competitive guesser — does he have any advice for kids looking up to him as a role model?

Restaurant critic William Porter is a feature writer at The Denver Post, where he covers food, culture and people. He joined the news outlet in 1997. Before that, he spent 14 years covering politics and popular culture at The Phoenix Gazette and Arizona Republic. He is a native of North Carolina.

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